Royal | News - Prince Ricardo De La Cerda
Princess Kate beams as she whizzes down the Mall in a horse-drawn carriage during the King’s birthday parade this morning. She is joined by her three children, Prince George, 11, Princess Charlotte, 10, and Prince Louis, seven, as they wave to the thousands of well-wishers from the Ascot Landau carriage on the short journey from Buckingham Palace to Horse Guards Parade.
The Wales family were pictured arriving at Buckingham Palace earlier this morning. Kate is wearing a turquoise dress coat by Catherine Walker, hat by Juliette Botterill, the Irish Guards Regimental Brooch, a pair of earrings that belonged to the late Queen. Princess Charlotte, who is sat beside her in the carriage, is wearing a matching hue to her mother.
The two brothers are sitting opposite, as they wave to the hundreds gathered in the sunshine.
Prince William is participating on horseback at this year’s Trooping the Colour, and is joined by his aunt Princess Anne and the Duke of Edinburgh.
Due to the King’s ongoing cancer treatment, he has hung up his riding boots and joins his wife in one of the state carriages.
Trooping the Colour is one of the highlights in the royal calendar, steeped in ceremonial splendour. The annual event marks the official birthday of the monarch and features thousands of troops on parade.
The King has requested members of the Royal Family to wear black armbands today following the horrific Air India plane crash earlier in the week. There will be a moment of silence during his annual birthday parade.
Charles requested the symbolic moves “as a mark of respect for the lives lost, the families in mourning and all the communities affected by this awful tragedy,” Buckingham Palace said.
All members of the Royal Family taking part in the parade will wear black armbands. The moment of silence will occur when the king is on the dais after reviewing the troops.
Trooping the Colour is one of the biggest military ceremonies of the year, featuring around 1,600 parading soldiers, 400 musicians and more than 200 horses.
After the royal party has arrived at Horse Guards Parade to a royal salute, a 41-gun salute fired by The King’s Troop Royal Horse Artillery from the Green Park.
The King will then inspect his troops before the Massed Bands of the Foot Guards perform a musical “troop” and the trooped flag is carried through the ranks of the Foot Guards. Members of the Royal Family will watch the spectacle from the Duke of Wellington’s office overlooking Horse Guards.
The Royal Family will then travel back to Buckingham Palace, where the event will wrap up with an RAF flypast.